Dimitar Berbatov

Dimitar Berbatov
Berbatov.jpg
Personal information
Full name Dimitar Ivanov Berbatov
Date of birth 30 January 1981 (1981-01-30) (age 28)
Place of birth    Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria[1]
Height 1.89 m (6 ft 2+1⁄2 in)
Playing position Striker
Club information
Current club Manchester United
Number 9
Youth clubs
Pirin Blagoevgrad
Senior clubs1
Years Club App (Gls)*
1999–2001
2001–2006
2006–2008
2008–		 CSKA Sofia
Bayer Leverkusen
Tottenham Hotspur
Manchester United		 050 (25)
154 (69)
070 (27)
010 0(2)   
National team2
1999– Bulgaria 064 (41)

1 Senior club appearances and goals
counted for the domestic league only and
correct as of 16:14, 15 November 2008 (UTC).
2 National team caps and goals correct
as of 10:13, 13 October 2008 (UTC).
* Appearances (Goals)

Dimitar Ivanov Berbatov (Bulgarian: Димитър Иванов Бербатов; born 30 January 1981 in Blagoevgrad)[1] is a Bulgarian footballer who plays as a striker for Manchester United in the Premier League and the Bulgarian national team.[2][3] He is a four-time winner of Bulgarian Player of the Year honors.

Contents

Biography

Berbatov's father, Ivan, was a professional footballer with local outfit Pirin Blagoevgrad, and his mother, Margarita, was a professional handball player.[4] As a youngster, Berbatov supported A.C. Milan and modelled himself on Marco van Basten until Euro '96 in England, when the then fifteen year old discovered a new role model in Alan Shearer,[5] formerly of Newcastle United, even sleeping in a Newcastle shirt. His mother later spoke of Dimitar's dream of playing for Newcastle one day.[6][7][8] Berbatov learned the English language by watching the "Godfather" films.[9] Outside of football, he lists his hobbies as drawing and basketball.[10]

Berbatov is a sponsor of children's charities in his native Bulgaria, supporting five care homes.[11] He also has plans to open a football academy in his hometown.[11]

Club career

Early career

Berbatov's career began at the Pirin Blagoevgrad club, and continued until he was spotted by legendary scout and coach Dimitar Penev.

CSKA Sofia

At the age of just 17, Berbatov moved to CSKA Sofia following in the footsteps of his father, Ivan, who also played for the club as a left winger and later as a defender. He played for CSKA in the Bulgarian A PFG between 1998 and January 2001 making his debut as an 18-year-old in the 1998–99 season. He started to make his name the following year when he scored 14 goals in 27 league games and won the Bulgarian National Cup in 1999.

Bayer Leverkusen

A run of nine goals in 11 games in 2000–01 was enough to persuade Bayer Leverkusen to sign Berbatov in January 2001. Berbatov had a slow start to his Leverkusen career with just 16 goals in his first 67 appearances for the club. He did however play a crucial role in the Champions League during his first season with the club scoring a memorable solo effort against Lyon with an excellent piece of skill, as well as a goal against Liverpool in the quarter finals. He also played a part in the final against Real Madrid coming on as a substitute for Thomas Brdaric after 38 minutes.

In 2001–02 Leverkusen were runners-up in the Fußball-Bundesliga and the DFB-Pokal. During the 2002–03 Bundesliga season Berbatov established his place as the first-choice forward at Bayer Leverkusen but it was not until the 2003–04 season that he really began to shine scoring 16 goals in 24 starts. The following two seasons saw him go from strength to strength, netting another 46 goals including five in the Champions League 2004–05 raising awareness of his talent and generating interest from teams throughout Europe.

Tottenham Hotspur

Speculation surrounded a potential move in 2004 for the Bulgarian Footballer of the Year, but it was May 2006, when Berbatov finally joined Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur for a fee of €16m,[12] (£10.9 million).[13] making him the most expensive Bulgarian player in history. After being granted a work permit, the transfer was completed, and Berbatov joined Tottenham on 1 July 2006. He scored two goals in two minutes in his first match as a Tottenham player against Birmingham City in a pre-season friendly match.[14]

Berbatov scored his first competitive Tottenham goal 2 minutes into his home debut in the Premiership game against Sheffield United at White Hart Lane. He built up a rewarding partnership with Robbie Keane in the UEFA Cup until Spurs' departure to Seville in the quarter-finals, and, despite Martin Jol's rotation of his strikers, Berbatov firmly established himself as the first choice forward at the club. He scored five goals in four games during the group stage of the UEFA Cup, with his performances earning two man-of-the-match awards in the group stages against Besiktas and Club Brugge.

Despite his good form in European competition, Berbatov took a while to adapt to the Premiership. However, he soon began to regain the league form he had shown at Leverkusen with an excellent performance against Wigan, scoring one and creating the other two in a 3–1 win. On 9 December 2006, Berbatov scored his first Premiership brace for Spurs in a 5–1 victory for his side against Charlton Athletic. Berbatov came on as a second half substitute against Fulham in the FA Cup to score his first two goals in the competition. Berbatov scored his first away goal in the Premiership at Goodison Park against Everton, a first-time shot from around the penalty spot after an Aaron Lennon cross. Spurs went on to win the match 2–1.

Berbatov and Spurs team-mate Robbie Keane were named joint winners of the Premier League Player of the Month award for April, becoming the first players to share the award since Arsenal's Dennis Bergkamp and Edu jointly claimed the award back in February 2004. He scored the 100th goal of Tottenham's 2006–07 season with the first goal of a 2–0 victory over Charlton Athletic on 7 May 2007.

Berbatov is also one of the few people to have two goals included in the BBC's goal of the month competition shortlist, with his sublime efforts against Wigan Athletic and Middlesbrough both being included. Berbatov ended the 2006–07 season with 12 goals in 33 appearances in the Premier League, and also chipping in with 11 assists.

Due to his highly impressive displays, especially in the latter half of the season, he won the Tottenham Hotspur player of the season award in 2006–07. Berbatov was also included in the FA Premier League's PFA Team of the Season on 21 April 2007, one of only three players in the team not to play for league winners Manchester United (the other two being Steven Gerrard and Didier Drogba). After Spurs narrowly lost to Arsenal in the North London derby on 22 December 2007, Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger compared Berbatov to Thierry Henry.[15]

His first Spurs Premier League hat-trick came on 29 December 2007 after he bagged four goals in a 6–4 win against Reading.

Berbatov played in his first cup final for Tottenham on 24 February 2008 in the Football League Cup at Wembley Stadium against Chelsea in which he scored an equalising penalty. Tottenham went on to win the game 2-1 after extra time, with Berbatov collecting his first trophy in English football.[16] On 9 March, Berbatov scored a brace of headers in the 4-0 demolition of West Ham United.[17] This took his Premier League tally of goals for the season to twelve, which was equal to his 2007 league total. He ended the season with 15 league goals and an identical overall record of 23 goals and 11 assists. He again scored Spurs' 100th goal of the season in this campaign, hitting the opener in the 1-1 draw at Wigan on 19 April.

The 2008-09 season began in circumstances when Berbatov's desires for greener pastures dominated tabloid headlines. Ongoing rumours of a substantial bid by Manchester United unsettled the striker, and despite training with Spurs Berbatov was dropped for the games against Sunderland.[18] and Chelsea.[19] Alex Ferguson sought to quell these rumours, describing his feelings as "less optimistic" about securing new signings before the close of the transfer windows.[20]

Manchester United

Berbatov lining up for Manchester United.

After much speculation, Berbatov completed a move to Manchester United on 1 September 2008 for a fee of around £30.75 million, with Fraizer Campbell joining Tottenham on a season-long loan as part of the deal.[21][22] This came despite Tottenham accepting a bid for Berbatov from Manchester City on the same day.[23]Berbatov's contract to United is for four years,[24] and he will wear the number 9 shirt previously worn by Louis Saha. Berbatov later insisted he never even considered a move to Manchester City.[25].

Berbatov marked his Manchester United debut with an assist to a Carlos Tévez goal away to Liverpool.[26] Berbatov scored his first two goals for Manchester United in their 3–0 win away to Aalborg BK in the Champions League group stage on 30 September 2008.[27] He scored his first league goal, for United, with the third goal in the 4–0 victory over West Bromwich Albion on 18 October 2008.

Career statistics

Club Season League Cup League Cup Continental Other[28] Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
CSKA Sofia 1998–99 11 3 5 3 – 0 0 0 0 16 6
1999–00 27 14 4 2 – 2 0 0 0 33 16
2000–01 12 8 0 0 – 4 7 0 0 16 15
Total 50 25 9 5 – 6 7 0 0 65 37
Bayer Leverkusen 2000–01 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 0
2001–02 24 8 6 6 0 0 11 2 0 0 41 16
2002–03 24 3 0 0 0 0 7 2 0 0 31 5
2003–04 33 16 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 36 19
2004–05 33 20 1 1 0 0 10 5 0 0 44 26
2005–06 34 21 2 3 0 0 2 0 0 0 38 24
Total 154 68 12 13 0 0 30 9 0 0 196 90
Tottenham Hotspur 2006–07 33 12 5 3 3 1 8 7 0 0 49 23
2007–08 36 15 2 2 6 1 8 5 0 0 52 23
2008–09 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Total 70 27 7 5 9 2 16 12 0 0 102 46
Manchester United 2008–09 11 2 0 0 0 0 3 4 0 0 14 6
Total 11 2 0 0 0 0 3 4 0 0 14 6
Career total 291 122 28 23 9 2 55 32 0 0 377 179

Statistics accurate as of match played 3 December 2008[29]

Honours

CSKA Sofia

Tottenham

Individual

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Dimitar Berbatov: factfile - Manchester United", Manchester Evening News (2008-09-02). Retrieved on 2008-09-04. 
  2. ↑ "Players and staff: Dimitar Berbatov", Manchester United (2008-09-02). Retrieved on 2008-09-04. 
  3. ↑ "Berbatov angles for 'dream' move", BBC Sport (2008-08-18). Retrieved on 2008-09-04. 
  4. ↑ "Berbatov Supports Bulgarian Nurses in Lybia", Bulgaria News (2007-06-06). Retrieved on 2008-09-04. 
  5. ↑ "No dream duel for Berbatov", UEFA (2003-02-18). Retrieved on 2007-03-10. 
  6. ↑ Blackburn, Martin (2007-10-20). "Toon-mad Berbatov slept in Shearer shirt". Retrieved on 2007-10-23. "He said: "Dimitar never missed a Newcastle game when it was on television. And Shearer was up there with Pele as a God for him." Another pal, Stefan Damianov, recalled how Berbatov considered himself to be an honorary Geordie as he followed the Toon and grew up" 
  7. ↑ "Toon-mad Berbatov slept in Shearer shirt", South Shields Gazette, 2007-10-20, http://www.shieldsgazette.com/nufc/Toonmad-Berbatov-slept-in-Shearer.3398269.jp, retrieved on 2007-10-23 
  8. ↑ "Tottenham's Berbatov was Newcastle mad" (2007-10-19). Retrieved on 2007-10-23.
  9. ↑ "Berbatov excels in the spotlight to put Tottenham through", The Independent (2006-11-24). Retrieved on 2007-03-19. 
  10. ↑ "Dimitar Berbatov". BBC. Retrieved on 20 May 2006.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 "How Manchester United star Dimitar Berbatov played his way out of poverty", Daily Mirror (2006-09-13). Retrieved on 2007-09-13. 
  12. ↑ "Nine for Berbatov". tottenhamhotspur.com. Retrieved on 18 May 2006.
  13. ↑ "Berbatov: Spurs on the 'up and up'". premierleague.com. Retrieved on 20 May 2006.
  14. ↑ "Berbatov double sinks Birmingham", BBC Sport (2006-07-22). Retrieved on 2007-08-20. 
  15. ↑ Wenger: Berbatov Reminds Me Of Henry, Goal.com, 24 December 2007
  16. ↑ Jonathan Stevenson (2008-02-24). "Tottenham 2-1 Chelsea", BBC Sport. Retrieved on 2008-02-24. 
  17. ↑ Saj Chowdhury (2008-03-09). "Tottenham 4-0 West Ham", BBC Sport. Retrieved on 2008-03-10. 
  18. ↑ "Match Squad Update", Tottenham Hotspur (23 August 2008). Retrieved on 2008-08-23. 
  19. ↑ Spurs Told Berbatov He Wasn't Wanted At The Bridge
  20. ↑ "Ferguson cools Berbatov rumours", BBC Sport (28 August 2008). Retrieved on 2008-08-28. 
  21. ↑ "Man Utd complete Berbatov switch". BBC Sport (2008-09-01). Retrieved on 2008-09-01.
  22. ↑ "Manchester United deal". Tottenham Hotspur FC. Retrieved on 2008-09-01.
  23. ↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/m/man_city/7592272.stm
  24. ↑ Steve Bartram (2008-09-01). "Reds sign Berbatov". Manchester United FC. Retrieved on 2008-09-02.
  25. ↑ "Berbatov not tempted by Man City", BBC Sport (2008-09-12). Retrieved on 2008-09-12. 
  26. ↑ "Liverpool 2-1 Man Utd". BBC Sport (2008-09-13). Retrieved on 2008-09-13.
  27. ↑ Hibbs, Ben (2008-09-30). "Berbatov Plays It Cool". manutd.com. Retrieved on 2008-10-01.
  28. ↑ Includes other competitive competitions, including the FA Community Shield, UEFA Super Cup, Intercontinental Cup, FIFA Club World Cup
  29. ↑ Endlar, Andrew. "Dimitar Berbatov". StretfordEnd.co.uk. Retrieved on 2008-12-03.

External links

Manchester United F.C. – current squad

1 Van der Sar • 2 Neville (c) • 3 Evra • 4 Hargreaves • 5 Ferdinand • 6 Brown • 7 Ronaldo • 8 Anderson • 9 Berbatov • 10 Rooney • 11 Giggs • 12 Foster • 13 Park • 15 Vidić • 16 Carrick • 17 Nani • 18 Scholes • 19 Welbeck • 20 Fábio • 21 Rafael • 22 O'Shea • 23 Evans • 24 Fletcher • 26 Manucho • 28 Gibson • 29 Kuszczak • 32 Tévez • 33 Hewson • 34 Possebon • 35 Cleverley • 36 Gray • 39 Chester • 40 Amos • 41 Macheda • 42 Eckersley • Manager: Ferguson